Interested in blogging for timesofindia.com? We will be happy to have you on board as a blogger, if you have the knack for writing. Just drop in a mail at toiblogs@timesinternet.in with a brief bio and we will get in touch with you.

A national tourism bill: Tourism an important engine of growth in new economy, we need an Incredible India 2.0

“If I were asked under what sky the human mind has most fully developed some of its choicest gifts … I should point to India,” wrote renowned Orientalist F Max Mueller talking about India. Perhaps this development of human minds spilled out as amazing architectural marvels, traditions and festivals across India.

Chad Crowe

However, many of us within India are unaware of India’s cultural heritage, let alone foreigners. I believe, in this context, it’s high time we channelise our tourism policy and create an Incredible India 2.0.

Tourism is one of the largest sectors today in the world economy. It accounts for around 9% of world GDP and contributed to some 200 million jobs globally. It is clear that tourism today is a very well defined economic sector. And this warrants that tourism receive as much government, private sector and media attention as do sectors like manufacturing and finance.

For India, tourism can be a game changer industry. The Modi government, aware of this fact, has made several efforts towards boosting tourism in India. These include visas-on-arrival, e-tourist visas, development of different tourism circuits and central support to tourism institutes. Not to forget the PM’s consistent pitch to make India clean through Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

Moreover, tremendous work on developing road and air infrastructure has also contributed to tourism in India. The result has been that while the world tourist growth was 4%, India saw an aggressive 9.7% foreign tourist arrivals growth in 2016. Our foreign exchange from tourism grew at 8.8% to $23 billion.

However, if we need to turn tourism into an important engine of economic growth, there’s a need to create a cooperative federal body like GST Council. The success of GST Council has showed us that there’s a possibility of creating similar pan-India forums for developing and implementing different policy verticals, among them tourism.

The mechanism for this is to set up a Sustainable Tourism Interventions Council. I intend to propose this through my Private Members’ Bill called the National Tourism (Sustainable Development and Promotion) Bill, 2018. The Council shall include the Union tourism minister, state tourism ministers, and members from academia and private sector. While the idea of one more government setup may smell of red tape, this one is not. Because, on the lines of GST Council, the Sustainable Tourism Interventions Council shall be constituted with the mantra of cooperative federalism.

Many states lack strong policy research institutions as well as resources. Therefore, a collaboration with the Centre and other states will be very useful in developing tourism as a solid industry across Indian states. The Council may annually take up five states from different regions of India and set an agenda for them. The Council may also create Action Plans, going down to district level, for these states.

One issue observed in my state, Himachal Pradesh, is that tourists are concentrated in a few destinations while many other regions go unexplored. For example Dalhousie, Kullu-Manali, Shimla and Dharamshala are amongst the most popular destinations, but adventure tourist destinations such as Kaza, Pangi and Lahaul-Spiti go unexplored. By focussing on these destinations, government can provide adequate connectivity and infrastructure which will ease pressure from the most popular destinations. Consulting with the private sector is very important because they will provide us with innovative solutions and opportunities to create employment.

Another critical pillar in developing tourism industry is human resources. Therefore in the bill there is a provision to create a Skill Enhancement Certification Agency (SECA). SECA can set up or recognise skill development institutions which will impart training in skills related to tourism such as training guides, language courses, cuisine and other skills.

But tourism is not without negative effects. Tourism, according to a UNWTO report, may have accounted for 5% of global CO2 emissions due to transportation and energy utilised from hotels. Many tourist destinations are made dirty; tourists also throw many plastic items such as bottles and covers. Tourism may also lead to cultural frictions between locals and tourists. To iron out such negative repercussions of tourism, the National Tourism Bill provides for several provisions which are aimed at reducing the negative impact because of tourism.

One other aspect of tourism that is often ignored is marketing and promotions. The success of the Incredible India campaign highlights the importance of marketing in attracting new tourists to India. Hence, the bill proposes to set up a Marketing Task Force led by a Chief Public Relations Officer with compulsory educational background in marketing. The Task Force should develop innovative marketing techniques to divert tourists to new destinations as well as attracting newer tourists.

Additionally, some innovative provisions of the bill include developing an ‘ease-of-doing-tourism’ ranking which will rank states according to their ability to draw more tourists. The bill also seeks to constitute a Heritage Fund to enable government to acquire heritage buildings. Such funds may come handy in cases such as acquiring Babasaheb Ambedkar’s house in London.

The biggest proponent of India as a wonderful tourist destination is Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Sustainable Tourism Interventions Council is intended to be a policy directive in that direction. In today’s age it is very important to take decisions based on an integrated approach rather than a silo approach. Here the National Tourism Bill will be a very important instrument in developing a wholesome and sustainable industry around tourism.

During the golden era of Indian civilisation, everyone who knew about it wanted to visit it for different reasons. It was a must-go school for the insatiable mind; it was an opportunity for the mercantile class; and it was a heaven for many others. It is time we make that happen again.